Riot Games Plans to Double Down on Its Expansion in China.mp4

Hit Points

The U.S.-based game maker has announced a new Shanghai studio that will be hiring in the “hundreds.” ...“In China we have a lot of passionate players for ‘League of Legends’ and for Riot Games,” VP and head of China for Riot Games Leo Lin told CNBC.

Transcript

00:01They're the makers of the wildly popular PC game League of Legends.

00:06Now, going after one of the world's largest shares of gamers,

00:09U.S.-based Riot Games has announced plans to double down in China

00:13with the opening of a new Shanghai studio that will be hiring in the hundreds.

00:22The move shouldn't come as a shock as Riot Games is 100% owned by Chinese tech conglomerate Tencent,

00:28the world's biggest gaming company.

00:30Though, as Leo Lin, Riot's VP and head of China, explained to CNBC,

00:34Tencent's role is that of publisher only.

00:37Quote,

00:38Riot Games operates independently and Tencent respects a lot of that.

00:42We are very confident that we will move forward together in China to serve our players.

00:47China leads the world in gaming revenue, according to Newzoo's 2020 Global Games Market report

00:53and boasts one of the highest percentages of PC gamers in the world.

00:57It's also expected to be the world's largest generator of esports revenue in 2021.

01:02League of Legends is one of the most popular games in esports,

01:05and its World Championship will be held in China for the second year in a row.

01:09In short, China's incredibly lucrative gaming market is a force that can't be ignored.

01:14In 2019, American gaming company Blizzard came under fire for its ban of a player who expressed support for protests in Hong Kong.

01:22Riot Games has also been accused of caving to pressure from China by censoring the words Hong Kong

01:28and asking players to keep politics out of broadcasts.

01:31PC gaming is only a part of the pie, and Riot is hoping to go after China's mobile space next,

01:37which accounts for the highest share of gaming revenue in the country.

01:40To that end, it has launched a mobile spin-off of League of Legends called Wild Rift.

01:44According to Lin, the company, quote,

01:47will be opening up a mobile esports league very soon in China.

01:51.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended